Chapter 7 - The Thirty Men
The thirty men at my wedding had not been random guests.
Once Lydia said it, I went back through the seating chart.
Eight were senior subcontractors.
Four represented lenders.
Three worked for Mercer Construction’s bonding company.
Six were long-term investors or project partners.
The rest were relatives tied to the company.
The “men’s table” had been Patricia’s idea.
I had thought it was old-fashioned and ridiculous.
Now I saw something worse.
It was theater.
Patricia wanted me to serve them because she wanted the room to see me accept my place inside the Mercer structure.
Not legally. Socially.
Later, if I challenged company decisions, they could say I had known what kind of family I married into.
Maya tapped her pen against the table.
“That still doesn’t explain why Daniel needed the guaranty before the ceremony.”
My phone rang.
It was Mark Mercer.
I almost ignored it.
“Elena, please don’t hang up.”
“What do you want?”
“I didn’t know he was going to hit you.”
“That’s a very low standard, Mark.”
“I know.”
He sounded shaken.
Then he said, “Dad wants to meet you.”
Howard Mercer had left day-to-day management after a stroke two years earlier. I had seen him only twice since.
“Why?”
“He says the refinancing is not what Daniel told you.”
“Then he can speak to my lawyer.”
“He will. But there’s something else.”
I waited.
Mark lowered his voice.
“Dad says your payroll money never went to payroll.”
The room seemed to narrow around me.
“I watched Daniel send payroll confirmations.”
“Dad says those were real payments. Just not funded by your loan.”
“Where did my $186,000 go?”
May you like
Mark took a breath.
“To Blue Alder.”
